We live, simultaneously, in two different worlds. Ultimately, we live in the World of Nature, a world that we did not create and the world upon which all life depends. Most immediately, we inhabit a "human world" that we create ourselves. Because our human world is the result of our own choices and actions, we can say, quite properly, that we live, most immediately, in a “political world.” In this blog, I hope to explore the interaction of these two worlds that we call home.

About Me

Gary A. Patton

I was an elected official in Santa Cruz County, California for twenty years, from 1975 to 1995. Now, I am an environmental attorney, practicing law in Santa Cruz County. If you would like to contact me, send me an email at gapatton@mac.com.

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Tuesday, September 5, 2017

#248 / DACA And Democracy

As the image above proclaims, I support DACA. DACA is an immigration program that "defers action" on certain "childhood arrivals." In other words, the DACA program provides a bureaucratic mechanism by which certain young persons who are in the United States without proper immigration credentials can avoid immediate deportation. Those who qualify are often called "Dreamers." I have had a number of "Dreamers" in my classes at the University of California, Santa Cruz. An immigration program that promotes the ability of talented young people to stay in the United States, and to make a contribution to the country, seems to me to be a very good national policy, indeed.

If you are keeping up with the news, you will be aware that President Trump has determined to end the DACA program. Here is a link to a news story from yesterday, September 4, 2017, indicating that the President plans to eliminate the program today, but only after a six-month delay. A report on today's official action can be found right here.

According to that news story yesterday, "the message from the White House to Congress is that if lawmakers like DACA, they should write legislation for it, and the White House will consider it, likely favorably."

President Trump could have simply terminated the DACA program and deported everyone who currently has "Dreamer" status. Some of his hard-hearted advisors would have liked that, and some of them apparently urged that course of action. That kind of dramatic action would also have been consistent with some of the president's more extreme anti-immigrant statements. But the president didn't opt for immediate deportation. Let's be thankful for that, and perhaps use this occasion to restore some balance to the way the nation is currently establishing its national policies. Important national policies should not be established by executive or administrative action. My gosh, have you seen who our current Chief Executive is? National policy should be set by the Congress. That's what the Constitution says. That's the way our representative democracy is supposed to work.

In the case of DACA, let's make sure that our democracy does work. Across the country, people should be telling their Congressional representatives to take prompt action to make sure that the "Dreamers" find that their dreams can come true!

That is what America is supposed to be all about!

Maybe, despite all the horrible possibilities, we can get a responsible set of immigration laws as a byproduct this recent action!